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Hi, My Name Is Savanna and I Have An Exercise Problem

I have a major weakness, always have. I am seriously embarrassed to admit this. I have been blessed with good genes and eat somewhat healthy, but if I am being honest, I intensely suck at exercising. I have always gone through times throughout my life where I will be pretty good. Before I had the triplets I remember going to the gym and running at least 4 miles on the treadmill at a time. Now, if, and that is a big if, I run a mile, I want to cry my eyes out. When it comes to working out, I am extremely weak minded. I feel like I am revealing my soul at an AA meeting. “Hi, my name is Savanna and I have an exercise problem.” Time to actually admit that I have a problem.

Maybe I haven’t found my love and maybe I dread the monotony of a boring run, but I really don’t want to be this way forever. I know I would feel a lot better if I just put forth effort to take care of myself. I know I would be a better mom and frankly, I want my kids to see me as an example of this.

To solve this, I have decided that I need a mid year overhaul. I am so nervous about this, because I haven’t dedicated myself to really taking care of myself since Hayes was in the hospital. I guess I lean toward the easy way and getting by has always just been the easy way. But I owe it to myself and especially to my children to really love my body. It is a miracle that has given me the gift of 6 perfect babies…3 all at once.

So, my goal is to overhaul myself for the entire month of July. We don’t have anymore road trips planned…not sure if we will for a very, VERY long time, but I digress. Basically, I am giving myself 30 days to see how I feel, completely taking care of my body. I am going to start with a short term goal that will help me not be overwhelmed. Hopefully that is enough time to get rid of some bad habits I have developed over the past year. Starting on July 1st, it is time for no more excuses. I crave feeling good. I have no doubts it would help me fight the sadness that sometimes threatens to take over. Hayes will get me through. Maybe he can be that little tap on my shoulder telling me to get the heck out of bed or put the freaking junk food down. Why wouldn’t he?! He loves me! He is the perfect example of fighting through rough times. I need to be more HayesTough!

Please tell me I am not the only person to experience this rut! Has anyone out there been here where I am and overcome? What are your success stories? Please shed some light on this for me and who is with me?!

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20 thoughts on “Hi, My Name Is Savanna and I Have An Exercise Problem”

Jasmine

I am TERRIBLE at working out. Like you, I’m blessed with good genetics so I’ve never NEEDED to work out. I decided after Harper was born I needed to shape up – mostly bc I see what’s under the clothes…and I was t happy. I’ve always used my lungs as an excuse to not work out, now I’m week two into working out. I’m not running but at least I’m starting somewhere. Anyway…I feel your pain.

I can totally relate! I think it’s has gotten more difficult with each child I’ve had because life gets busier and we’re always rushing. I know I tend to expect too much of myself and then beat myself up when I can’t do it. We are busy moms. Shoot for a high intensity 20 minute workout. Then, even if you hate it, it’s over quickly! One that I do is 4 rounds of – 10 burpees, 20 push-ups, 30 of some ab thing, 40 squats and 50 second plank. Takes less than 20 minutes and I feel the burn later! And of course, what you eat matters more than anything. I hate that I can’t just work out and eat what I want, but it’s just the fact. Find healthy food that you love and try to get the whole family on board. It’s never easy to do alone. It’s just to hard sometimes to plan. I have to say…when I tried to type “hard” it autocorrected to “Hayes” !! No joke. That’s crazy. I hope these little things are helpful!

K this is exactly what I needed to hear! Starting somewhere! I think I convince myself I have to do something crazy intense like cross fitness when I will just fail at something like that because it isn’t realistic for me! Love that your phone autocorrected!! 💚

One other thing, though admittedly easier with only 3 kids, is that we all go to a trail together 2/3 times a week. My 6 and 9 year old bike. My 3 year old is in a stroller. My husband pushes it and we run 2-3 miles. That way, we all get to spend that time together. Unfortunately at this age, it will get more difficult to maintain muscle mass, so we should really focus on strength training and that’s just more difficult for me to enjoy. Getting old is awesome. 🙄 And then there’s the frustrating fact that my husband can change his habits for one week and lose 10 lbs. You’re not alone. The struggle is real…

Don’t forget another great way to love your body is to schedule a massage! 😛
Yes, I can totally relate to your exercise stuff. I was such a bookworm as a kid but I still did a ton of outdoor stuff (not team sports) like biking, walking all over town, swimming, roller skating. I continued to bike & hike in my teens/early 20s but never anything very scheduled. I’ve still never had a gym membership.
When I started having kids (I was 21 with my first), I counted whatever I did with them as my “exercise.”
I always figured I would love yoga (I do – wish I’d started much earlier) and whatever year I first heard of Pilates, it really appealed to me, too. And if you do Pilates on a reformer, you can do cardio stuff, too (I never got into the cardio part 😛
The few years I did reformer Pilates, I fell in love with it! Since weight loss wasn’t a big goal, I started seeing & feeling results right away.
The downside is that the reformer classes were pretty pricey and back when the economy tanked, I couldn’t justify it anymore 🙁
The past two years I physically haven’t been able to do much other than walk, and barely even fast enough to call it exercise but better than nothing!
I’m 10 weeks post-op from my abdominal surgery today & *really* looking forward to being able to do more and more in the near future. I’m most excited about getting back to a regular yoga practice… And a local new-mom-friend just opened a Barre fitness place a few blocks from our house. Her little girl is just two days younger than our boys.. There’s a daycare at her place but only four-kid capacity LOL. I’m hoping she wants to give me a discount when I’m ready to try her workouts!
There you have it for another rambling reply from me 😛
Happy July! Looking forward to your updates!!

Good for you! I WISH I’d been blessed with good genes. I feel like I just look at chocolate and I gain weight. I’m a big foodie and I’ll never give anything up! I try to eat in moderation and portion control….yea. I’ve never been athletic and dreaded the thought of working out. But in my early twenties I wanted to make a change and started to go to the gym and I’ve been staying active and working out ever since. It’s time for myself and to not think about anything. And I always feel SO much better afterwards. “the only workout you’ll regret is the one that didn’t happen”. Best of luck!

Hi Savannah,
I went through this same thing about a year ago! You are very smart to only commit to what you will realistically stick to…we can’t be too hard on ourselves. I subscribed to Betty Rocker’s free 30 day challenge (I think it’s called the “make fat cry” challenge) where her 15-20 min workout videos are emailed to you each day. A 15 min workout doesn’t sound like much (they were not easy!) but it was the perfect kick-start for me because while I’m never going to spend an hour in a gym, I do need some sort of plan or structure or I will weasel my way out. My kids and husband actually ended up joining me for several of the workouts which is a plus! Half-way through I realized I needed to overhaul my diet as well. I completed the 30 days and never felt better…mentally & physically! I then did a 90 day challenge and now just look for something new whenever I get bored whether it’s a jump rope routine I found on Pinterest, a routine I make up…whatever I will actually do. I might go a couple weeks without structured exercise but I at least have something to fall back on when I start to feel sluggish. Good luck to you! You are definitely on the right track!

I just started on Saturday! Decided not to wait until the 1st or even a Monday. I felt soooo much better all weekend. I recommend Kayla Itsines’ workout, BBG. I follow her and the BBG community on instagram, and they are the best, women uplifting and cheering other women during their fitness journey. 28 minutes workouts 3 times a week plus low intensity something like walking 2-3 times a week. There are the pdf guides or an app. I sound like a crazy sales person, but I am just so hooked. 🙂 whatever you will do it will be good for you, i am sure. Go girl!

You mean running up and down stairs, chasing toddlers, walking around the kitchen multiple times, loading kids into the car or walking down the aisles at the grocery store isn’t exercise? 😂 I’ve been doing it all wrong. LOL! I am soooo with you. I HATE working out but I do love the feeling afterwards. I’ve realized running isn’t my thing anymore like when I was younger, now it makes me hurt everywhere like I’m 90. But going on long walks and having some hills for the incline burn is great. Cross fit…Id rather be a beached whale. I think it’s all about finding something you actually enjoy. One of my favorites now are the “Just Dance” or “Dance Off” games on the XBOX. I can do it at home AND my daughter’s like doing it with me because you can compete. You burn some serious calories and some of the songs are from when you and I were growing up which is hilarious to see the kids dance to. GOOD LUCK on your journey Savanna. I will start July 1st as well to cheer you on and to think of being more “Hayes tough”.